by johnnymarin | Oct 13, 2018 | Pigeon Spikes
The Carolina Waterfowl Rescue is trying to figure out who is poisoning pigeons at a shopping center in Union County.
The organization posted a video on Facebook showing the disturbing effects on one of the birds believed to have eaten poisoned corn at the Wesley Chapel Shopping Center.
“Flushed his stomach essentially got all the poisoned feed out,” said Bayleigh Machaffie with Carolina Waterfowl Rescue.
So far, four birds have been brought to the rescue, most too sick to help.
“So basically when birds ingest the poison seeds, they’re able to fly around a little bit before they start seeing symptoms of the poisoning. So they can get a little ways, but they come from the same intersection,” Machaffie said.
The rescue said the seed is a legal remedy to scare off unwanted birds. But if too much is eaten, it can prove fatal, not just in pigeons, but other pets, even children.
“It’s not good just to have it lying around,” said Machaffie.
Carolina Waterfowl Rescue does not know who is spreading the potentially fatal feed, but the hope is the person will see this story and stop.
“Any animal that is mistreated I don’t think is right,” said Machaffie. “They’re not doing anything to you, like anything bad to you.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 12, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
In the third floor hallway of the Pentagon, just outside the Army Chief of Staff’s office, there is a pigeon.
Walking the corridors, the lifelike pigeon stands out among the cases of military history that display Revolutionary-era bayonets, Civil War uniforms and replicas of helicopters used in Vietnam. Upon closer inspection, one might notice the pigeon is so life-like because it has been taxidermied. It’s also missing one leg.
That pigeon’s name is “President Wilson” — an unsung hero of World War I that made a daring flight to save U.S. troops exactly 100 years ago on Friday.
President Wilson was a military carrier pigeon, one of many in the U.S. Army Signal Corps that delivered messages between commanders and troops on the front lines. The pigeons were especially useful tools of communication during World War I when the telephone and telegraph were still unreliable new technologies.
According to U.S. military accounts recorded in the U.S. Army Center of Military History and the National Archives, Wilson was born in France and first assigned to the U.S. Army’s newly formed Tank Corps, delivering messages to Tank Battalions commanded by Col. George S. Patton in the Battle of Saint-Mihiel.
But soon afterward, Wilson was assigned to an infantry unit conducting operations near Grandpré during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive.
On the morning of Oct. 5, 1918, his unit came under attack, and Wilson was dispatched to send a message that the unit needed artillery support. During the 25-mile journey, German soldiers spotted him and began firing into his flight path. (It should be noted that some accounts of Wilson’s heroics place the event as occurring on Nov. 5, but multiple historians reached by ABC corroborated the Oct. 5 date.)
Wilson was hit several times, losing a leg and suffering a wound to his chest, but he managed to deliver the message in a record 25 minutes.
Surviving his wounds, Wilson was retired and sent to the U.S. Army Signal Corps Breeding and Training Center at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey, where he would live another eleven years.
After his death, Wilson was taxidermied and presented to the Smithsonian Institution before being transferred to the custody of the U.S. Army in 2008. Now, located in the prestigious halls of the U.S. military’s headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, Wilson serves as a reminder that these simple birds — often considered a nuisance by the general public — were once war heroes.
Carrier pigeons were used by both the Allied and Central Powers during World War I and could even provide updates to military commanders when launched in midair from planes.
“Launched mid-mission, the birds would fly back to their coops and update ground commanders on what the pilots had observed,” the National Archives wrote in a blog post in January. “Quick updates like this were essential for leaders to know what the battlefield looked like and what the enemy was doing in its own trenches.”
“Tanks carried the birds in order to relay the advance of individual units. Even after the introduction of the radio, pigeons were often the easiest way to help coordinate tank units without exposing the men to dangerous fire. Without a radio set, the soldiers would have had to leave the relative safety of their tanks to relay or receive orders,” the Archives said.
When the pigeons weren’t in use, they were stored in mobile units, often converted horse carriages or even double-decker buses.
The birds are thought to use low-frequency sound waves to map their environments and find their way from location to location.
Another famous World War I pigeon was known as Cher Ami — his moment of heroism came during the Meuse-Argonne Offensive in the fall of 1918.
The German Army surrounded elements of the 77th Division for five days, at one moment confusing the Americans as they accidentally shelled their own men in an attempt to fire at the enemy.
Messages were unable to get to U.S. commanders, so Cher Ami was released as the division’s last hope. Like Wilson, Cher Ami flew through a barrage of gunfire, also sustaining injuries to his leg and chest. But he successfully delivered the message, ending the friendly fire.
The French even awarded Cher Ami the Croix de Guerre with Palm, a military decoration, for his service.
Military carrier pigeons were again used in World War II. In that war, 32 pigeons were awarded the United Kingdom’s Dickin Medal for their heroic actions.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 11, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
In Bangkok in all areas forbidden to feed the “flying rats”. Violators face imprisonment of up to 3 months. In the capital of Thailand came into force a law banning the feeding of pigeons in all 50 districts of the city. In public areas of Bangkok have already appeared warning signs in Thai, Chinese and English.
For violation of the law to local residents and foreign visitors are threatened by punishment in the form of imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months or a fine of 25 thousand baht. Bangkok authorities introduced the ban to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, vectors of which are the “flying rats”.
Thus the mayor of the Thai capital, Asawin Kwanmuang said that the administration does not seek to strictly prosecute offenders. The authorities want to use the promotion to draw people’s attention on the real threat from pigeons, said the mayor, writes turizm.ru. Feeding the pigeons is prohibited in another major city in Thailand – Chiang Mai.
Moreover, similar bans worldwide. For example, can be fined for the bread thrown to the birds in some districts of Paris in the Central areas and squares of Venice, Florence, Geneva, London, Helsinki.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 10, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
REFERRING to the SMS “Pigeon hazard” (The Star, Oct 1), Thailand is considering jailing or fining anyone caught feeding pigeons. The Thai authorities say pigeons are “rats with wings” and cause bird flu, respiratory diseases and meningitis.
Sadly, here in Kuala Lumpur, there are people throwing out food to feed the pigeons. One such place is Jalan Taban 2 in Lucky Garden, Bangsar. They do this every day, usually in the morning, and there are hundreds of pigeons on the road and telephone lines. When the pigeons flutter their wings, small feathers are seen flying around. Residents also find feathers in their kitchens, and this is not healthy.
These so-called “kind souls” who feed the birds are not concerned about health when they throw food on the road. Some even throw food into the back lanes. They never think that crows, other birds, cats and rats also come to eat the food. This is getting out of control and if something is not done soon, someone will get seriously ill due to the germs carried by the pigeons. I hope the Health Ministry will conduct an awareness campaign to educate the public on the dangers pigeons pose to people.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 9, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Allan Cassidy (66), a resident of Dubbieside, in Lower Methil, claims rats have been an issue in the area for two years, but that this was “the worst I’ve ever known it”. One of the dead rats. Allan, a pensioner who lives in a private let, lost two of his racing pigeons last week after they came down with Paratyphoid. He says the racing pigeons caught the bacterial disease which is caused by the rats. Paratyphoid is a pigeon disease caused by salmonella – and it is thought this can be spread by rats. Allan has used medicine to treat the rest of the racing pigeons, and deployed poison and traps to kill the rats. However, he says he does not know the root of the issue and does not wishing to keep paying out for medicine, traps and poison. Allan has called on Fife Council to investigate. “It’s not a new thing in this area, so there must be some food,” he explained. “The amount of rat poison that is disappearing – I’ve never seen it like that. I don’t know where the source is. “I’m a pensioner. It’s hard enough to keep my pigeons going, never mind buying the bait and poison. “The council need to investigate and get to the root of this. Vermin running about like this – that’s no good.” Allan describes the racing pigeons as “massively important” to him. Delight for residents after controversial… £10,000 funding for Fife to get ‘weather… He added: “A pigeon has to be 100 per cent to fly the channel. Anything less and it might not perform well or you might even lose it.” Fife Council said it had received no reports of rats in the area.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 8, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
Enterprise and Daleville business owner Kiko Arana spoke about his love for racing pigeons at the Lions Club meeting on Sept 12.
He races pigeons in the homing pigeon family, which can instinctively find their way home from great distances. They are different from the normal pigeons you’ll see on the sidewalk.
Due to that instinctive ability, these pigeons have a history of being used to deliver messages for both military and civilian use, according to Arana.
According to a New York Times article, the “first message-bearing pigeon was loosed by Noah. The ancient Romans used pigeons for chariot races, to tell owners how their entries had placed. Genghis Khan established pigeon relay posts across Asia and much of Eastern Europe. Charlemagne made pigeon-raising the exclusive privilege of nobility. The Rothschild fortune is said to have been seriously augmented by a pigeon bearing news of the British victory at Waterloo.”
These pigeons were widely used throughout World War I and according a Wall Street Journal article, the French military was seeking to return its pigeons to active duty in case of an electromagnetic attack.
Arana’s biggest interest in the birds, however, is their ability to imprint the location of their home. Arana said that no one really knows for sure how homing pigeons find their way home, but he has a theory.
“I’m a believer that—more than anything else—the smell is what brings them home,” Arana said. “They’ve done a lot of experiments but when they block the sensors in the nose, they (the pigeons) cannot make it home.”
It’s also this sense that allows people to race homing pigeons.
The pigeons are released at set location and use this ability to navigate back to the club house. The pigeon that makes it back to the club house the fastest is the victor.
The races in the area are in 75, 150, 200, 300, 400 and 600 mile lengths with the longer races taking multiple days for the pigeons to return.
Pigeons average about 50 miles per hour during the races, according to Arana.
He entered his first race in 1977 in Puerto Rico and has been racing ever since.
Though his birds still race in other parts of the country, Arana said the club he used to race for here, the Wiregrass Racing Pigeon Club, is inactive. He said he hoped that teaching people about racing pigeons would help create newcomers to bring the club back to life.
He brought one of his pigeons to the meeting and showed it to all the members of the Lions Club.
“I wanted to release the pigeon but then I remembered it was hunting season,” Arana said.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 7, 2018 | Bird Netting
A pigeon-infested building in the heart of Hucknall could finally be repaired after the owners were prosecuted for failing to improve its appearance.
Residents said the dilapidated building at 1a Albert Street is a known spot for drug users, with up to 40 needles found during a sweep.
It is also caked in pigeon excrement, graffiti, and residents fear it is “a dangerous eyesore” which has become a playground for youngsters.
Ashfield District Council has been fighting with the owners – Trent Properties Limited – since November 2017 following a number of complaints.
The council said the building – which has been empty for some years – is in a poor condition and has become home to a flock of pigeons.
The local authority said it contacted the owners requesting scheduled work to be carried out within three months, but they failed to do so.
Despite warnings and a fixed penalty notice of £100, which they failed to pay, the council had no option but to take them to court.
In their absence, the council said the company were found guilty, fining them £2,000 with a victim surcharge of £170.
They were also ordered to pay the council’s prosecution costs of £484.40, and must carry out the work on the property within 28 days.
Baker Paul Harris, 60, who lives next door to the building, said: “It is an eyesore. Some new flats have been built across the road and that is all they are seeing – pigeons.
“It has been like that for five years, ever since I moved in. It is not very nice living next to it. When I come off working nights all you can hear is pigeons. It does affect your sleep.
“It needs boarding up. I think at one time it is used to be a butchers.”
Lorraine Pendlebury, 52, who has lived on Albert Street for seven years, said: “It is filthy – birds are living in there and rats go through the jitty. They need to knock it down because when they first cleared it they found about 40 needles and kids do go under there and it is dangerous.
“I think they should be fined more.”
Support nurses Kerry Saxelby, 43, and Rebecca Wilshaw, 42, who live in Hucknall and regularly pass by the building felt it was “unsafe” and an “eyesore.”
Mrs Saxelby said: “It is a total eyesore. It is on an access road so a lot of people do see it.”
Mrs Wilshaw added: “It looks unsafe. There are a lot of kids that play around here so if anything happens. I don’t think fining them will sort it out. I think it needs to be more.”
Talking about the prosecution, Councillor Jason Zadrozny, leader of Ashfield District Council, said: “The council have a number of dilapidated buildings on our caseload, and although some of these owners chose not to engage, we will find them to ensure that these buildings don’t remain a blight on our communities.
“This prosecution is a brilliant result for Hucknall residents and shows that we take disrepair seriously and are committed to cracking down on these rogue property owners. We want them to know that we are coming for them.”
Nottinghamshire Live tried to contact Trent Properties Ltd for a comment, but were unable to do so.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 6, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
We’re not talking about the future anymore. Driverless vehicles are here. In the latest example, in Catalonia, Spain, an autonomous bus called Èrica is being tested around the region to help citizens become familiar with what driverless technology entails.
These bus experiments are also designed to allow local-government officials to adapt to this new means of transportation, which they expect to be fully functioning by 2020.
Equipped with eight sensors, the red and yellow self-driving shuttle unveiled by the Association of Municipalities for Mobility and Urban Transport, AMTU, is 100 percent electrically powered with 14 hours of autonomous driving. It’s air-conditioned and suitable for reduced-mobility passengers.
Looking like a rectangular minivan, Èrica can transport up to 11 passengers and an attendant, who is there to help and advise travelers and deal with emergencies.
Some 4,600 citizens from Sant Cugat, Terrassa, and Sabadell, all cities close to Barcelona, already took the new bus in September. Now AMTU plans to bring it to Girona, El Vendrell, Reus, Martorell, and Vic in October.
However, preparing the bus for these new routes takes time. Before it can begin to carry passengers, Èrica, which stands for electric, revolutionary, intelligent, shared (compartit in Catalan) and amicable, needs two days of preparation, as it has to record the route to be driven in detail using GPS.
Once the bus has been prepared for its new route, passengers can board and have the choice of standing or using one of the six available seats.
On the road, laser sensors help the bus detect unexpected obstacles in its path, such as passers-by or even pigeons. It’s reassuring that the vehicle cannot run anything over, but the safety features also mean it is constantly stopping and starting.
As part of those safety features, the bus is also limited to a maximum speed of 18km/h, or 11mph. This restriction is also to protect standing passengers from sudden braking.
The speed limit is also because the urban environment is complex. With no bicycles, skateboards, scooters, passers-by, cats, dogs, or birds, the bus could in theory travel at speeds of up to 40km/h, or 25mph.
AMTU director Joan Prat tells ZDNet that the shuttle is able to ‘see’ what happens within 200 meters and is programmed to come to a rapid halt, if necessary, when it detects an object at less than 30 centimeters.
However, he also acknowledges that certain weather conditions remain a problem. “In case of heavy rain, the vehicle detects [the water as] an unidentified object, so it can’t operate.”
In the near future, cameras located on the roof will be able to identify exactly what the object encountered is, he adds.
Those issues are among the reasons why, for now, these self-driving shuttles are only be used for pre-checked routes and as first- or last-mile systems, to connect a train station to the city center or vice versa, or work in restricted traffic environments, for example.
“Shuttles like Èrica are designed to complement the current transport network and not to replace any line,” Prat says.
In France, the RATP group conducted similar experiments with EZ10 shuttles in Paris last year and is continuing its automation program in the region this year with a bigger bus driving itself to the depot. Stockholm and Dublin have also hosted pilot programs.
Pere Calvet, general manager of Catalonian railway company FGC, says automation technology is here to stay.
“We still need to overcome hurdles, such as legislation, and carefully deal with moral issues as well as the coexistence of people and machines in the urban environment,” he says.
“But the shift to a more sustainable mobility is necessary and unstoppable.”
Progress certainly has to be made, as polluting emissions in Spain shot up 4.5 percent in 2017, the biggest increase since the Kyoto protocol came into force.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 5, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
The rapidly increasing numbers of pigeons (nok pilab) has ruffled a few official feathers in Bangkok. There was bit of a flap after authorities warned that citizens caught feeding the birds would face a stiff fine, explaining the pigeons were spreading disease. These birds divide opinion, some calling them “rats with wings”, others more generously “doves without the PR”. Fond as I am of feathered friends, I must admit pigeons are not my favourite. About 10 years ago, I wrote about the problems of pigeons at our residence. It began harmlessly enough with a couple of the birds raiding the dogs’ food bowls at the back of the house. Initially it was not a major concern, but word soon spread amongst the pigeon community. They began arriving in squadrons and became a real nuisance. Getting rid of them was another matter. I quickly learned that clapping my hands and shouting “Shoo!” was only a temporary solution and also looked quite pathetic. Pigeons are smart and swiftly worked out that hand-claps are not gunshots. On occasions I felt like those people in the Hitchcock film, The Birds, although they were attacked by seagulls, a much more aggressive species than the pigeon. Please log in here to fully view this exclusive content. If you aren’t a member yet, simply sign up here. It’s totally free & takes only a minute.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 4, 2018 | Animal Deterrent Products
A devastated pigeon fancier has recalled watching fire engulf his pigeon shed that left around 70 birds dead.
Stephen Salmon, 59, was on the phone when his neighbour started banging on his front door in Trowbridge, Cardiff, saying his pigeon loft was on fire.
The blaze on Tuesday had spread from next door causing the 40-foot long building to catch fire.
Dad Stephen, who has raced pigeons since he was 11 years old, said: “It was absolutely devastating. I was here with my friend at about 4.30pm and he said someone had lit a fire and I should get the washing in.
“It wasn’t big then so I didn’t think anymore of it.”
But around two hours later his neighbour was banging on the door saying the pigeon loft had caught fire.
Stephen said: “I ran into the garden and into the shed to try and save my stock birds.
“But it was just too much. They had to drag me out of there – I didn’t like seeing them die like that.
“The fire brigade came but it was too late, they had all perished.”
Out of around 120 pigeons Stephen had in the shed, around 70 were killed in the fire.
South Wales Fire and Rescue Service sent two crews to the scene, and said the cause of the fire was accidental.
Stephen said: “What is most upsetting about it is my stock birds because over the last 10 years I have built it up and spent thousands, and you can’t replace that.
“My kids paid £600 for two birds for me once and they perished.”
Stephen, who is part of the Llanrumney Royal British Legion pigeon club, said the total loss amounted to around £10,000.
The pigeon loft is currently cordoned off and will be removed by the Cardiff Community housing association.
Stephen praised the quick response of the fire service and said he was “most grateful” for their help.
A fire service spokeswoman said they received reports of a fire at a property in Trowbridge at 6.28pm.
Two crews, from Roath and Cardiff Central, attended the scene.
They confirmed a pigeon loft was damaged and said the crews extinguished the fire.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 3, 2018 | Bird Deterrent Products
An officer responded to a 4th Avenue address where the complainant on scene was upset that the gas truck driver was waving his gas measure stick at the pigeons that he was feeding bread to in the store parking lot. The complainant said he stops here once a week and feeds the pigeons and doesn’t think it’s right for them to wave items at the pigeons and make them fly away. The officer noted, “The truck drivers were just keeping the birds from flying around while they refilled the gas pumps due to their being bread all over the parking lot.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 2, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
I was at the Pek Kio hawker centre in Cambridge Road recently and, as usual, was greeted by the sight of pigeons on the floors and tables pecking away at leftover food.
This is a problem at not only this hawker centre, but also many others.
And at most of these hawker centres, these birds brazenly strut around among patrons and often fly onto tables with food even when there are people eating at the table.
Patronscannot leave their food even for a moment, to order a drink for instance, for the birds will quickly zoom in on their food.
These birds are not only a hygiene problem but are also potential disease carriers. They would be a risk in the event of another bird flu outbreak.
Bangkok recently highlighted this problem and is taking steps to eradicate pigeons.
We cannot wait till a bird-borne disease breaks out before taking action.
What are the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority or the National Environment Agency doing to ensure hygiene standards and prevent the outbreak of disease?
I am sure anyone with a scoop net would be able to capture many of the pigeons in just one morning as they do not fly away.
Perhaps the town councils can work out a scheme to give incentives for the capture of these birds.
Even if we do not capture many, hopefully, this will scare them away from people and food centres.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Oct 1, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
It was a quiet morning. I was sitting at the table, eating my mandatory bowl of gruel — I mean, my delicious, fiber-filled, multigrain, plant-protein, good-for-me bowl of cereal — when I glanced out the window and saw that a half-dozen or so pigeons had descended on the backyard to peck away at whatever morsels had fallen out of the bird feeder.
“Oh, I love pigeons more than anything in this world,” I said out of reflex, “except oatmeal.”
I allowed myself a small chuckle at pulling out a “Sesame Street” line that seemed appropriate, when my moment of Zen ended with the pouring of reality’s cold water.
“Those aren’t pigeons,” my breakfast companion said. “They’re doves.”
Tomayto, tomahto … doves are just pigeons from a gentrified neighborhood, I decided. For that matter, I wasn’t eating oatmeal, either.
By then, though, my consciousness had floated downstream and I found myself contemplating the lover of pigeons and oatmeal.
I thought about Bert.
And, consequently, of Ernie.
The BFFs have been living together for nearly 50 years now — not that there’s anything wrong with that — and lately have suffered another oh-so-2018 kerfuffle that has upset their domestic tranquility.
Yep, their sexuality is being called into question.
Again.
This time, it was a former “Sesame Street” writer … who joined the show 15 years after Bert and Ernie appeared on the scene … who admitted that whenever he wrote for the pair, he did so from the perspective of them being a gay couple.
This, of course, brought the usual denial from the folks behind “Sesame Street.” Media members chimed in on various aspects of the long-running controversy — as sincere pleas for inclusivity rang out, conservatives blasted progressives for usurping the identity of a couple of Muppets, and soapbox pronouncements abounded about why it was important for children to see a loving LGBTQ2+ couple on their TV screens.
This bonfire quickly became a conflagration (Too soon? Sorry) when Frank Oz, who created Bert, was asked about the current flare-up and said that the pair were not gay … or straight, for that matter.
“They’re not, of course. But why that question? Does it really matter?” Oz asked. “Why the need to define people as only gay? There’s much more to a human being than just straightness or gayness.”
And, because this is how the world works these days, a full-fledged Twitterstorm broke out — with some of those who found they could identify with B&E as they were discovering their own identity said sure, Oz might have created Bert, but being the creator doesn’t stop the creation from becoming whom it will be.
After all, God created Elton John.
It was back in 1976 that The Artist Formerly Known As Reggie Dwight came out, announcing in that far-from-progressive time that he was bisexual.
“Saturday Night Live,” never one to miss an opportunity for drive-by social commentary, made note of Sir Elton’s less-than-surprising declaration on Weekend Update, following up with the related story that “Speedy Alka Seltzer came out of the medicine cabinet and admitted he was bicarbonate.”
Of course, Speedy Alka Seltzer wasn’t a real person … as opposed to, say, Bert and Ernie.
Earlier this year, the Tony-winning musical “Avenue Q” — a puppet-filled show that offers a somewhat darker take on a “Sesame Street” universe — ran at the Oregon Cabaret Theatre.
Through the puppets Rod and Nicky, it offers its own take on the sexuality question of BFFs who live together forever — only with such a heavy-handed dose of what can only be called in-your-face-ism that by the time Rod announces that he’s gay, it’s not only no surprise, but on the night I attended it drew almost no reaction from the audience.
The puppeteer-actor pulling Rod’s strings, so to speak, milked the audience repeatedly until a mediocre round of applause was deemed sufficient enough to allow the show to continue.
It was an odd moment of live theater; then again “Avenue Q” is an odd show — knowing that it’s shoving homilies down the throats of the dinner theater audience, while simultaneously serving up a self-conscious heaping helping of social manipulation for us to chew on.
“Avenue Q” twisted this concept even further with a throw-away one-liner about the LGBTQ2+ production of “Oklahoma!” at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival — which took audience members further out of their comfort zone as to what they were supposed to think about the performance, and the play, they were watching.
Eating my cereal, watching the high-rent pigeons, my mind wandered without necessarily getting lost until I landed upon a question: If we go to a cultural event to be entertained, do we feel intruded upon if served a side dish of political or cultural point of view?
In a landscape where Sofia Vergara can be in love with The Artist Formerly Known As Al Bundy, Joanie can love Chachi, and a Betazoid can love a Klingon — if “Sesame Street” went counter to the original concept of Frank Oz and Jim Henson and said that — yes — Bert and Ernie are more than BFFs, would it be greeted graciously as overdue affirmation, or would it open the door to another avenue for cultural tub-thumpers intent on putting their words into our mouths?
The word from “Sesame Street” is that Bert and Ernie, officially, “remain puppets.”
As do we all.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 30, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
NEW ULM — Pigeon and poultry enthusiasts from near and far participated in the New Ulm Poultry and Pigeon Association show at the Brown County Fairgrounds Saturday.
For most veteran enthusiasts, it’s a time to renew old friendships and take their favorite birds to a show of about 900 birds, have them judged and visit in a place they’ve been coming to for many decades.
“I remember coming to a national show at George’s Ballroom in 1965. They put cages on top of the ballroom booths,” said Mark Peterson of Amboy. “(George’s Ballroom owner) George Neuwirth was a big pigeon guy. A band would play and he had a big crystal fountain shaped like a pigeon. George didn’t do anything small. He was a showman.”
Don Roscoe of Kasota recalled showing poultry and pigeons at the New Ulm Armory more than 50 years ago.
“I used to hunt in the fall besides go ot shows, but then decided poultry shows, most of which usually happen in the fall, were more fun than hunting,” said Roscoe, who taught geography at Mankato State University.
Staff photo by Fritz Busch Show-goers take a good look at chickens displayed among hundreds at the Brown County Poultry & Pigeon Association show at the Brown County Fairgrounds Saturday.
Art Rieber of Neola, Iowa, said he doesn’t mind driving four and one-half hours from his home, 30 miles northeast of Omaha, to New Ulm. Sometimes, he’ll drive even farther to pigeon and poultry shows, which are also held at the McLeod County Fairgrounds in Hutchinson.
“I can see the Woodman Tower (in Omaha) from my kitchen window,” Rieber said. “It’s about seeing the exhibitors. I’ve known these people forever.”
Doug Grams of New Ulm said he enjoys coming to shows and that his seven grandchildren are also interested in the poultry and pigeons.
Robert Kosek of New Ulm said he remembers selling a case of eggs each week from this chickens.
“They give me eggs year around and I enjoy meeting a lot of interesting people at shows and maintain friendships with them,” Kosek said. “I’ve got pigeon and poultry pen-pals from all over the United States.”
New Ulm Pigeon and Poultry Association Secretary Aaron Dittbenner of Morgan was busy at the show, keeping records of everything that goes on. He admitted he is busy preparing for the show about a week before it begins.
Some poultry breeders enjoy traveling to national shows during the winter months in places like San Diego, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Salt Lake City, Florida, Texas and Vancouver, Wa. Breeders who travel far to shows often use special mailing boxes ship their birds to distant places.
Dominique chickens, also known as Pilgrim Fowl or Dominickers, were transported across the country by early settlers. They were valued for their meat and brown eggs.
Years ago, their feathers were very sought after for pillow and mattress stuffing. In addition, they tend to be calm, personable birds, making them more successful as show birds or family pets.
Also known for their close feathering, the breed survived the Great Depression due to it’s hardiness and ease of up-keep, according to The Livestock Conservancy.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 29, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
The central government’s Swachhta Hi Seva has left animal lovers and religious communities in a flap. The cleanliness campaign, which was launched across the country on Saturday and will continue till Mahatma Gandhi’s 150th birth anniversary, has led to a ban on feeding pigeons at Gateway of India’s “iconic” kabutarkhana.
To ensure that Gateway’s promenade was clean for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s interactive televised address on Saturday morning —attended by Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan and business tycoon Ratan Tata — the BMC banned feeding of pigeons four days earlier, dismantled the makeshift kabutarkhana, a large barricaded enclosure, and took away water troughs.
Civic marshals were then deployed to stop people from feeding the birds.
Decades-long tradition
The move has rankled local Jain organisations, which claimed that they have been feeding pigeons at the spot for decades. The groups have threatened to stage a protest.
“This is unfair. We have been dropping grain at this spot for decades. The issue concerns the religious sentiments of the Jain community. The BMC must restore the kabutarkhana. Else, we will go on a protest,” said Paras Jain, member of a local temple trust.
Paras said several traders from south Mumbai as well as Jain temple trusts volunteer to supply grain to feed pigeons at Gateway.
Animal activists, too, slammed the BMC’s move. Sunish Subramanian Kunju, founder of NGO Plant & Animals Welfare Society, Mumbai, said, “Birds have become used to getting food at particular feeding spots. If that is suddenly stopped, then they will panic. The BMC must not take such arbitrary steps, and must bring out a clear policy on kabutarkhanas, instead,” he said.
The activists and bird feeders have the backing of local BJP corporator Makarand Narwekar. He said pigeons are intrinsically tied to Gateway’s charm. “They are as iconic as the monument itself. To completely stop feeding is not fair. We have requested the BMC to restore the feeding area and the water troughs. The BMC has agreed to allow feeding at a smaller portion of the promenade. We will ask it to give enough space so that those feeding pigeons will not be inconvenienced,” said Narwekar.
Not official kabutarkhana
BMC officials said permission for a kaburtarkhana at Gateway was never granted, adding that feeding of birds at the promenade had become a nuisance. “The feeding area kept expanding, even though there was no official nod for a kabutarkhana. There is no space for tourists who visit Gateway and it was not possible to keep aside so much space for pigeons,” said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant municipal commissioner of A ward, under which Gateway falls. “Since the Swachhta Hi Seva event was to be held there, we removed the barricades and stopped pigeon feeding. We will talk to those who are protesting against the BMC’s action.”
Narwekar said if pigeon feeding is a nuisance to tourists, then the BMC should designate a small space for it. “Stopping feeding suddenly is cruelty.” Another BMC official said on Saturday evening, a group of residents resumed feeding at the promenade. “However, it will not be possible to give back the entire space. We will examine the issue in detail next week.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 28, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
Avid young pigeon enthusiast Abigail Mona Redelinghuys (12) is a gr 6 pupil at Southcity Christian School. Her interest in pigeon racing was sparked by stepdad Hannes Nortjé when she was eight years old. After curiously studying Hannes’s interaction with his birds in his loft in 2015, she was given a pair of breeding pigeons by Frikkie Muller while on holiday in Western Cape.
This chain of events soon turned a hobby into a lifestyle. Abigail is currently the youngest member of the NPS Racing Pigeon Club on Lower South Coast. After racing pigeons competitively for almost two consecutive years, Abigail and her ‘blue bar pigeon’ (ring number NPS 2107) took first place at the recent KZN Combined Racing event.
Chairman of the NPS Racing Pigeon Club Deon Kapp visited Abigail Redelinghuys at the loft in Ramsgate to congratulate her on behalf of the club.
This is a phenomenal achievement as the bird had to travel 1 588m per minute (95 28km/h) over a distance of 557km from Boshoff, Free State, to Ramsgate against 1 197 other birds.
Abigail attributes her success to her passion for her pigeons and the support she receives from her family. The club looks forward to watching this young, enthusiastic member’s future progress.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 27, 2018 | Animal Deterrent Products
In January, Broadsheet reported on one of Melbourne’s most inspiring residents – the indomitable Parkdale pigeon.
Since at least October 2016 the pigeon has defied the efforts of Public Transport Victoria cleaners to remove its nest on top of an LCD screen at Parkdale Station.
The pig-headed bird has returned time and again to rebuild following the ruthless destruction of its nest, and has now given birth to two new baby chicks.
Pigeons usually stay with the same partner for life, and the randy little critters have been known to give birth up to six times a year, so it’s hard to say how many chicks have been raised at the Parkdale Station nest.
Some call them grey sky demons, but to others they’re a symbol of endurance and perseverance. Keep doing your thing, Parkdale Pigeon. Stick it to the man with your pile of sticks.
See the dedicated work of pigeon correspondent Michael Bell below.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 26, 2018 | Pigeon Patrol's Services
LAS VEGAS (KTNV) – A serious pigeon problem is popping up in at least one Las Vegas neighborhood forcing a family to declare an all-out war.
Sandy Love said the problem began a few years ago but now the pigeon population has ballooned in her neighborhood near Ann Road and U.S. 95.
“Just the pigeons, it’s crazy,” said Love.
“I mean, they are out of control now,” she added.
Love and her neighbors suspect someone is feeding the flying vermin nearby causing them to roost and poop — everywhere.
“This is my pigeon stick and it’s to get rid of all of the pigeons under my solar panels,” explained Love while holding a stick made of bamboo.
Love says aside from from the pigeon poop and feathers, she’s worried about her mother Liz Watson, 84, who suffers from Lupus.
“I do not have an immune system,” explained Liz Watson.
“I have SLE lupus and I’ve had it for 30 years so I have to be super careful,” added Watson.
The Southern Nevada Health District said pigeons can pose a danger to people.
A well-fed pigeon can produce up to 25 pounds of poop every year, according to the Southern Nevada Health District.
The city of Las Vegas introduced an ordinance against feeding pigeonsearlier this month, however a formal vote to enact the ordinance may not take place until October.
A Las Vegas spokesperson said if passed, it would bring the city of Las Vegas in line with similar ordinances on the books in Clark County and Henderson.
In the meantime, Love says she has fortified her home using pigeon spikes, gorilla glue, and a decoy owl.
Authorities recommend consulting with a pest control specialist to tackle additional pigeon problems.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 25, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
While the media in Mexico are forever filled with chatter about futbol and béisbol, there is another sport dear to the heart of many Mexicans which rarely ever makes the news.
I’m talking about pigeon racing, which has been practiced as organized competition in this country since 1936. Nowadays this sport is most popular in Jalisco and Michoacán. The city of Guadalajara, for example, is home to some 1,100 pigeon fanciers, who put up to 45,000 birds into competition every year.
In Spanish, raising and racing pigeons is called colombofilia, which comes from the Latin word columba, which means dove or pigeon in English and paloma in Spanish. Pigeon fanciers say it is both an art and a sport, because it involves raising and caring for the bird, protecting it from sickness and training it to be a deportista (sports competitor).
In Greater Guadalajara there are approximately 25 clubs and every year they hold two big events: one competition for birds over a year old and another for yearlings, young birds, which are called pichones in Spanish.
Whoever wants to compete must register with a club which sends a representative to your house to take the exact GPS coordinates of your pigeon loft. Then, those of your birds that will compete are fitted with a band containing a radio-frequency identification chip which is registered in a very sophisticated electronic timing scanner which you must purchase.
Let’s say the competition is for yearlings who must fly from Zacatecas to Guadalajara, a distance of about 300 kilometers. Typically, some 25,000 birds may be registered for this. All these birds are driven to Zacatecas in specially modified trucks and are simultaneously released in some remote spot early in the morning.
Back in Guadalajara, the pigeon owner anxiously waits for his or her bird to arrive. When it does, the chip is recognized by the electronic scanner and the exact time of arrival is registered.
Next, the scanner must be carried to the club and its information transferred to the club’s computer. The computer then divides the exact distance flown by your bird by the amount of time it was flying and determines, on average, how many meters per minute the bird flew.
These calculations are important because the lofts at which these birds are arriving are scattered all around metropolitan Guadalajara, so the distance each flew from Zacatecas is slightly different. One bird’s average speed may differ from another’s by a fraction of a second.
I learned all this from Juan Jorge Padilla, a Guadalajara-based veterinarian who specializes in pigeons and doves. “How did you get interested in these birds?” I asked him.
“I was five years old,” Dr. Padilla told me, “and lived next door to a neighbor who raised pigeons. Well, they grabbed my attention because — unlike chickens — they could fly and they always came back. So my father bought a pair of pigeons from our neighbor and I started caring for them.”
“How do you train a pigeon to become a deportista?” I asked.
“Well, first you must understand that these pigeons are twice as big as ordinary ones. It’s like comparing a thoroughbred horse with one that pulls a hay wagon. For training them, you start off by letting your pigeon fly around at home so it gets to know its own rooftop. Then, when it’s three or four months old and used to being on its own for at least an hour, you take it on trips five kilometers away, to the north, south, east and west, so it begins to develop its sense of orientation. You let it loose and it starts to fly and it comes back to its loft.”
“What if a hawk spots it?”
“Yes, this happens — or they are shot by a hunter and they come back missing feathers, or a tail, or they don’t come back at all. Some of mine have returned wounded and you can tell what happened to them. An injury from a BB gun and a wound from a hawk’s claw are very different. But you stitch them up, you heal them, and they survive.”
I asked Padilla how far homing pigeons have been known to fly and he told me a story related in The Book of the Racing Pigeon by Carl Naether. It seems that in February of 1930 a blue-blooded racing pigeon bred at Elmont, Long Island, in the United States was sold for breeding purposes to a mining engineer in Caracas, Venezuela.
In May of that year, Miss 1303, which was her name, escaped from the engineer and in August 1931 she was found in her old loft, in fine condition, even though she had flown more than 3,000 miles from South America to Long Island.
The story of Miss 1303, however, pales in comparison with a report by John Frazier Vance, writing in Scientific American. In his article What Brings Them Home? Vance says that an experiment was carried out on August 15, 1931 at Arras, France, to see if a homing pigeon could find his way back to Saigon, Indo-China, 7,200 miles away.
The bird, which is unnamed, is said to have arrived at his home loft on September 9, only 24 days after takeoff.
The more I heard about raising homing pigeons, the more I came to understand that la colombofilia is a rather expensive hobby. However, Juan Jorge Padilla told me the first prize for a competition in Guadalajara might be a mere 5,000 pesos, with 4,000 to 1,000 pesos going to the following four winners.
“You can definitely make more money raising canaries,” he told me, “but your emotional connection with the canary will never be anything like what you feel for una paloma. The pigeon you can hold, you can caress; you witness the birth of its babies, you suffer if it comes home hurt.
“We say this bird is tame, but the moment it’s on its own it must become wild, it must find its food and water; it must ride out storms, navigate in fog; it must avoid cats, possums, mountains and dangerous air currents. It must survive.”
“It can fly up to 120 kilometers per hour with a favorable wind,” Padilla continued. “but a hawk could catch up with it if the pigeon is tired. Then, at the last moment, the bird must have nerves of steel and execute a ‘barrel roll’ like those performed by fighter pilots to escape those sharp talons.
“That’s why you don’t really care if your pigeon wins, but what satisfaction you feel when it suddenly appears on your roof after a flight of hundreds of kilometers! You raised that bird from a little hatchling, as if you had personally trained a marathon champion from babyhood on.
“This satisfaction, seeing it arrive, maybe seeing it win, simply has no price! It is unique and it holds a special place in your heart and in your soul.”
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)
by johnnymarin | Sep 24, 2018 | Pigeons in the News
Laksi district officials on Thursday sanitised the house of an old woman who for decades had been feeding a large flock of wild pigeons and ignoring neighbours’ complaints about the mess they caused and the risk of disease. “Auntie Pigeon”, as she is known in the area, was also warned to stop doing it or face fines or even imprisonment. Laksi district chief Khajeerat Jaynakhom led a team to clean up the bird droppings and left over food that begrimed the two-story terrace house and its surroundings on Kosum Ruamjai road after a neighbour finally made an official complaint. They also disinfected the area. Mrs Khajeerat told 70-year-old Dueanchai Pengpreecha to stop feeding the birds because she was in violation of public health and cleanliness laws. She would be liable to a fine of up to 25,000 baht or even a jail term of up to three months if she persisted. The law prohibited people from feeding animals in public places in a way that would trouble neighbours, the district chief said. Ms Dueanchai agreed to cease and desist. The district chief had her signed a written promise to do so. “Auntie Pigeon” said she loved animals and had fed dogs and pigeons at her house for decades. She had not known that she was breaking the law. The number of visiting pigeons had soared dramatically in the past few years and she had to increase the amount of feed she provided, and scatter it on both the ground and upper levels of her house, she said.
About Pigeon Patrol:
Pigeon Patrol Products & Services is the leading manufacturer and distributor of bird deterrent (control) products in Canada. Pigeon Patrol products have solved pest bird problems in industrial, commercial, and residential settings since 2000, by using safe and humane bird deterrents with only bird and animal friendly solutions. At Pigeon Patrol, we manufacture and offer a variety of bird deterrents, ranging from Ultra-flex Bird Spikes with UV protection, Bird Netting, 4-S Gel and the best Ultrasonic and audible sound devices on the market today.
Voted Best Canadian wholesaler for Bird Deterrent products four years in a row.
Contact Info: 1- 877– 4– NO-BIRD (www.pigeonpatrol.ca)